NJ “gun control” law would ban small bore hunting rifles

posted at 11:01 am on May 25, 2014 by Jazz Shaw

Now that it has passed the New Jersey Assembly, a new law intended to restrict the rights of gun owners heads to the desk of Governor Chris Christie. It’s being billed as legislation to “restrict magazine size” in the Garden State.

The New Jersey state Assembly on Thursday sent Governor Chris Christie a gun control bill that would limit the capacity of gun ammunition magazines, but it was unclear whether the Republican governor would sign the measure into law…

The bill, approved in the Assembly by a 44-34 vote, would cut the maximum capacity of gun magazines to 10 from 15.

As usual, you have to read the details of the bill to find out precisely how bad it is. (Unless you’re Nancy Pelosi, of course.) Even if you agree with the premise that limiting the magazine capacity of weapons will somehow improve matters – and I don’t – the effect of this bill would be far more reaching. Proponents would have you picturing things like massive, extended, banana shaped magazines protruding from the butt of Dirty Harry size hand cannons or drum shaped, street sweeper shotgun feeds. But the truth of the matter is that such a law would reach far, far deeper into the homes of many law abiding citizens.

The gun ban that has gone to New Jersey Governor Christie for signature has been described as a “gun magazine restriction“, but it bans numerous common sport and hunting rifles. The ban has no exemption for rifles with fixed magazines, including most common .22 rimfire rifles that are used for sport and small game hunting…and almost never used in crimes. Assembly Bill 2006 bans rifles that meet this definition: (4) A semi-automatic rifle with a fixed magazine capacity exceeding [15] 10 rounds . . .

The bracket and underline show the existing and proposed laws. There are no exemptions for grandfathering. Anyone who possesses such rifles after the ban goes into effect will be guilty of a felony. This has already happened at least once, when the owner of a .22 Marlin that he won at a police raffle was convicted for owning the firearm. The model owned was either the one pictured below a very similar Marlin. It is an “assault weapon” under current New Jersey law, as it has a magazine capacity of 17.

I still fondly remember my very first one. Unlike the Marlin model described above, it was a Remington bolt action .22 long rifle with a bottom feed six round magazine. (You could load it with seven if you filled the magazine and put one in the chamber, but it had an annoying tendency to occasionally jam after the first shot when you did that.) But the Marlin isn’t all that different and my older brother had one. It’s a great first gun for young hunters seeking small game and a reliable target shooting piece.

But for all the fine qualities described above, this is not a rifle which jumps to mind as the weapon of choice for a madman seeking to go on a mass shooting spree or other act of widespread criminal mayhem. To be clear, here.. this is not to say that the Marlin rimfire .22 long rifle isn’t a dangerous weapon. All guns are, and it needs to be treated with the same level of respect and safe handling practices. But with a small bullet, 30 to 40 grain charge and a muzzle velocity of well under 1,400 feet per second, it’s just not a powerful weapon and is really best for small game and target shooting. (And yes, before any of you experts chime in, people can and do take down deer with a .22, but you’ve got to be a really skilled marksman to do it, whereas a .30-30 or a .30-06 is a lot more forgiving and allows for a body shot.)

But back to the subject at hand, allowing this bill to go through is going to outlaw an entire class of weapons which nobody is blaming for widespread, criminal gun violence in the country. Governor Christie should squash this ill considered piece of legislation at once and send a clear message to his opponents. If passed, this will turn into a gun grab of epic proportions, far outside the ostensible stated purpose of the law.

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Yeah, we saw how well limiting magazine capacity works just the other day. Guy went on a shooting rampage equipped with 40 10-round magazines. The people who commit these acts plan ahead. If you limit magazine capacity they just carry more magazines. They may have to swap out magazines more often but it’s not that big of an inconvenience.

No kitchen block should hold more than 5 knives. Seriously. a 10″, a serrated tomato, a paring, a cleaver (for the daring type) and a cheap 8″ carver (cheap because someone is going to use it to open a jar)

Nonpartisan should ask the family of the person killed by his hero Elliot Rodger with his BMW is car are killing machines.

Progressives and Progressive culture are responsible for most of the violence in this country. Progressive policies created the welfare culture that deliberately destroyed the black family so black community would once again become slaves of the Democratic Party. The resulting social disorder and the destruction of civil society created the gang culture that is responsible for most of the crime and violence in this country. The reason they made a hero out of a criminal thug like Trayvon Martin was to reinforce the positive image of the gangbanger and denigrate those people who stand up to them.

Progressive social policies have also created middle and upper class sociopaths who seek fame and revenge through mass murder. You know who is to blame for the latest atrocity by the knife wielding, hit and run murder Elliot Rodger? First and foremost are his Progressive parents who raised a spoiled, entitled punk. His father, like most Progressive perverts who inhabit Hollywood, dumped his wife and married a bimbo who is one year older than the kid. Did you ever think how this POS came to own $4600 in guns and ammo to go along with $80K BMW that he used to murder someone with?

Not only did his parents create an atmosphere where he thought he has a right to get laid but the entire Progressive culture reinforced that sense entitlement. Progressives told him everyone was a winner and so he had right to company of a hot blond babe. When the POS couldn’t get one he got mad and through a deadly temper tantrum.

nonpartisan, an Orwellian name if there was one, is just one temper tantrum away from being a rapist or a mass murder like his secret hero Elliot Rodger. Scratch a Progressive and you find a sociopath.

It is like people are stocking up for doomsday to keep their 22lr platforms running.

ajacksonian on May 25, 2014 at 1:13 PM

I’ve had many ideas about this. But I think the true culprit are the AR look-a-likes that are flooding the market. My kid can plow through a brick (30 rounds at a time) in under 20 minutes. And thanks to shootsteel.com (I think), and their gong targets, he does a good job of Beethoven’s 9th.

I’ve had many ideas about this. But I think the true culprit are the AR look-a-likes that are flooding the market. My kid can plow through a brick (30 rounds at a time) in under 20 minutes. And thanks to shootsteel.com (I think), and their gong targets, he does a good job of Beethoven’s 9th.

WryTrvllr on May 26, 2014 at 1:06 AM

The .223 is close enough for manufacturers to switch production schedules, yes. There are also 22lr adapters for rifles using .223 which used to mean that you could use the platform (mostly ARs) in either mode with the conversion just by removing the adapters (and I believe it came with a special magazine, but I’ve never owned one so can’t say).

22lr was once in the $20/500 round brick range at the low end and made for a great plinking rifle that doubled as the bug-out/survival rifle as well. Now when the stuff even gets in stock its from places like Lapua/SK or Eley/Remington and typically ‘Match Grade’ which means a premium for it. At this rate my Mosin-Nagant will be the cheapest thing to fire in the house using milsurp from overseas and that only due to the scarcity of 22lr. I do believe that there is a positive profit motive at offering .223 and other calibers over 22lr, and that is playing a part in it… which means there is a market niche waiting to be filled by a decent quality producer (and the market had at its lowest end LRN so we aren’t talking rocket science here) that can churn the stuff out quickly and make enough per package to justify the expense. I could understand the move to Match Grade ammo by a few places but due to the number of arms in 22lr there must be an underserved market out there for it at the non-Match Grade end.

Yes the AR is a popular platform and can be accessorized to all get-out. Yet the mainstay for the survivalist/Zombie Apocalypse/bug-out crowd has been stuff like the Ruger 10/22, Marlin 60, and just about anything else on the low end that is lightweight and a decent varmint gun. A brick of 22lr can last you a long time and takes up little space and with any bug-out bag you won’t even notice it as your canteen of water will weigh more.

Umarex makes Beretta’s ARX160. 22LR copy of their ARX100. Great plinker. I say it’s my kid’s, but in truth, I can’t wait for him to go to college so I can play with it. It’s hysterical. And relatively quiet with the long barrel.

I am a tad more cynical about the 22LR shortage. I can buy brick of 350 rounds of 9mm anywhere, but no 22LR ever.

Can’t teach kids to shoot, and enjoy shooting with a .223 or 7.62R. I think it’s on purpose. But then, I am into conspiracies. I see dead Mexicans all over, and Quebecois french fried by derailed trains.

This is nothing more than another false flag exercise from people who ultimately want to ban guns period.

Marcus Traianus on May 26, 2014 at 6:51 AM

Yes. But it is also a problem for the massive number of folks who are just too dumb to know any better. They really do think that stopping psychos with guns is possible, and they think these sorts of measures makes it possible to limit the damage from a psycho. The real problem isn’t the liar at the top, it’s all the da*n sheep who vote for them.

Wrong as always. But I’ll offer a few thoughts that are closer to the truth.

Society would function better without alcohol.
Society would function better without recreational drugs.
Society would function better without unrestrained promiscuity.
Society would function better without hatred.
Society would function better without envy.
Society would function better without corrupt politicians.

All of the above are true. But here, in the real world where the rest of us can tell the difference between imagination and fact, all of the above exist, and must be dealt with as real. Talking about what would be more ideal is valueless when the truth refuses to conform to your fantasy. If there were no guns, bad people would do bad things with different tools. It is a society which has chosen to ignore morality, or to suppress the brain’s ability to process morality through anti-depressant drugs or other chemicals, which results in people doing evil things. Guns are not the cause, guns have never been the cause, and you simply cannot be stupid enough to mentally substitute the tool for the real cause.

You come closest to the truth by pointing out that guns are designed to kill things. This is indeed so. However, my possession of a gun is NOT designed to kill people, because I am a reasonable member of society. My possession of a gun is designed to keep you, or the government, or any other unlawful intruder from taking what is mine without my consent. If you are also a reasonable member of society, you will never consider trying to do so. If you are marginally a member of society, you will recognize my possession of a gun as a very good reason for not trying to do so, and the gun will have served its purpose without having to kill. If you are a completely unreasonable non-member of society who decides to take from me anyway, then the gun will stop you, and it is my lawful right to do so.

Americans need to tell the government to kiss their arses. Governments can pass gun control laws all they want, he laws are meaningless. The US Constitution trumps any illegal law that they pass on gun control. The Constitution reads plain and simple. Our rights to bear arms shall not be infringed. That’s it. It is our duty to put a stop to government overreach, government criminality. The government has a short list of responsibilities, and they have far surpassed those responsibilities. It is time to stop it.

Just got a 400 round brick of American Eagle .22LR HP at our Bass Pro Shops last week – $20.79. They said they have it all the time now, but keep it behind the counter and only allow 1 box per household per day.

Wow, you can’t fix stupid. Um, Comrade Miller, a “law abiding” citizen would be no threat to any other “law abiding” citizen even with a 15-round magazine of those awesome light bullets they shoot vampires with in the Underworld movies, much less 15 .22 rounds. See what I mean, Verne? It’s the shooter, not the shot.

Christie has his hands full with this one. If his aspirations include seeking the highest office in the land I would suggest that he be very careful when limiting anything involving the Second Amendment.

What is your plan to attack the problem? How would you begin to go about confiscating illegally-owned firearms from, say, the entire nationwide network of the Latin Kings gang? Why don’t you walk the walk and go get them yourself? It wouldn’t even help for an eunuch like you to go into a gang neighborhood armed because you wouldn’t know what to do with it. Someone would end up taking it from you and using it on you.

Don’t even talk about legal gun owners giving up anything when so much danger exists in the world. All you do is make silly comments on message boards about how people shouldn’t own killing machines. Suggest a solution, be part of a solution. Or maybe society would function better if you just shut your uninformed hole.

Once we get rid of mechanical means of defense we can go back to a simpler “might makes right’ form of society.

Are you bigger & stronger than someone else? Then you can rob, assault, rape and or kill them as you choose.

It was a functioning societal form for centuries, and we should bring it back.

All this NOT being able to rape, assault and kill those smaller/weaker than you is bad for society, right nonpartisan?

Or do you have a society made up of something other than humans which you’d care to show… because HUMAN societies will end up as they always have.

If you’d care to call this “fine (better)” that’s your choice. I guess rape, assault, oppression, and “might makes right” is a better society for some.

Or should we pretend if we all sing Kumbaya that people won’t be bastard coated bastards anymore? Hey, if we’re pretending and ignoring reality we can just have YOU pretend guns aren’t real and nobody else has to do anything.